Tuesday 20 September, 7 pm UK. The first known settlement of Jews in the  Azores, an archipelago of Atlantic islands, began in 1818 with the arrival of five merchants from Morocco. By 1848 the Jews in the Azores numbered 250; several small communities had been established, the most important being in Ponta Delgada (founded in 1836). Among the founders were several members of the Bensaude family, whose descendants became influential in international commerce, banking, and philanthropy.There were once five synagogues in the city, but only one, the Shaar Hashomayim, Synagogue, remains. It was renovated in 2015 and is now a museum. The President of  the Friends of the Synagogue, José de Almeida Mello, will share with us the remarkable history of this remote community.